The present invention relates generally to interface devices for providing telephone services to customers, and in particular, to a multi-line interface device that enables an additional secondary phone service provider to provide telephone service to/from premises which are already furnished with telephone lines of an existing primary telephone service provider, the device being installed in the premises without the need to provide additional telephone devices, and, without the intrusion and necessity of significant rewiring.
Adding secondary telephone service to a residence or small business location (xe2x80x9cpremisesxe2x80x9d) presents significant difficulties in reconfiguring the premises for the multi-line services. For instance, there is a very strong probability that existing telephone services of a primary service provider or local exchange company (xe2x80x9cLECxe2x80x9d) will not be disconnected initially. Consequently, the existing customer-owned inside wire and single line telephones will remain in place and the new service provider is faced with the dilemma of installing a new telephone(s) within the premises which would require additional telephone(s) and necessitate the rewiring of the premises. Although the existence of quad wire may someday overcome some of the problems involved in providing multiple-line connections, it is very doubtful that continuity exists for the second line and rewiring is necessary at the phone demarc to intercept and redirect a spare pair of wires to the alternate service provider. Furthermore, each location where a second phone is to be added must be rewired to receive an RJ-11 plug from the new telephone.
It is the case that the complexity of installing a second telephone adjacent to an existing one is both costly and not conducive to customers"" preferences. Rewiring within the customer premises, either to install an additional line or to change existing wiring with multi-line cables, involves a level of expense which most residential customers will not voluntarily change. Many residential customers will chose to forgo a multi-line service rather than incur the cost of rewiring.
A few of the conventional ways for accommodating the addition of a new telephone is shown in FIGS. 1(a)-1(c), where: FIG. 1(a) illustrates the xe2x80x9cbridgingxe2x80x9d of two telephones 11a and 11b by connecting respective plug blocks 12a and 12b to the demarc connecting block 20 connecting the LEC line 50; FIG. 1(b) illustrates the wiring of an existing telephone plug block 12a for connection to a second block 12b for accommodating a second telephone 11b; and, FIG. 1(c) illustrates the removal of a first telephone plug block 12a for replacement with a second dual plug block 15 to connect two telephones 11a and 11b to the LEC demarc.
Another alternative is to change out the existing telephone 11a with a dual line telephone 11c, as shown in FIG. 1(d). However, phone replacement costs are high and in the case of portables, very expensive.
Another adverse condition of rewiring or changing wall telephones is the potential for damage. Inevitably, wallpaper is torn, painted areas are chipped, and, the replacement phone in all likelihood will not be in the old area. In the case of wall phones, access to concealed wiring is necessary, which ultimately requires removing the phone to access the wiring in the wall and exposing the provider to potential damage claims. The aforementioned solutions are not favorable to the customer and are costly to the new service provider.
Furthermore, it is more often the case that premises with multiple telephones and a secondary telephone provider service (second line) will have the second line terminated on only one phone. This is due to the need to rewire and the associated cost involved in connecting the second line to EACH phone. Thus, with only one phone connected to the second line, customer usage of the new telephone service provider""s network is minimal.
To circumvent all of aforementioned pitfalls, it would be highly desirable to install in premises having the need for multiple telephone line services provided by primary and secondary telephone service providers, a multi-functional interface box that will provide significant physical advantages to the customer while assuring the secondary service provider traffic on his network.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a multi-line interface device for providing multiple telephone line services to a home/office that is easy to install at a minimum cost.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which is optionally in series between each individual telephone station and the available central office dial tone lines of the primary and secondary provider.
A further object of the invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which is provided with an intelligent microcontroller and switching matrix for routing calls made from any connected telephone station to any central office line, or, routing of calls received from any central office (C.O.) line to any telephone station.
Still a further object of the invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which is provided with a novel call-waiting function for incoming calls, the function generating a call waiting indication tone for receipt by a telephone station having a call in progress, while simultaneously enabling ringing on other common bridged telephones connected to the device that are not in use (on-hook).
Yet a further object of the invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which performs call waiting features across multiple service lines.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which makes cost savings decisions available to the consumer by allowing them to choose between service providers automatically to obtain the least cost routing of their calling needs.
Furthermore, an object of the invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which is configured for interfacing various equipment, e.g., single-line and multi-line telephones and PC or FAX modems, etc. with various service providers, e.g., telephone companies, cable television companies, etc.
Yet even further, an object of the invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which is for use with the evolving Hybrid Fiber Coax (HFC) networks being deployed by Multiple System Operators (MSOS) or Cable TV companies today. The integral use of fiber optic technology in the loop enables the network to be more reliable and secure versus the traditional copper based telephone plant.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a multi-line interface device which includes a speech synthesizer for announcing the various programming modes, options and status of the device.
These and other objects of the present invention are attained with an interface device for simultaneously connecting various access lines to various stations. Any one of the stations answers an incoming call from any one of the access lines. The interface device has line access modules each connected to a respective access line, and station access modules each connected to a respective station. A switching network selectively connects at least one of the line access modules to at least one of the station access modules.
The switching network is controlled by a control unit in accordance with a predetermined sequence stored in the control unit or selected signals received from the stations through the station access modules. A speech synthesizer provides an audio signal to the stations indicating status the interface device, as well as available features and options of the interface device and the access lines.
The control unit provides internal bridging of station access modules to the same access line module. In a private mode, the control unit prevents further connections and interruptions of a private connection between a station access module and an access line module. In response to a ring signal from one of the access lines, the control unit provides a ringing tone to all or selected stations which have no calls in progress, and optionally provides a line waiting tone to the stations which have calls in progress.
In response to ring signals from the access lines, the control unit provides different ringing tones to the stations for differentiating between the access lines. When power to the interface device is interrupted, the control unit provides configurable default connections of the stations to one or more of the access lines.
Each of the line access modules includes a ring detect circuit which detects a ring current from one of the access lines and converts the ring current to a digital logic signal which is provided to the control unit; a current sense circuit which detects when the access line is active; and a hold circuit which provides a path for a line current when the respective access line is on hold.
Each of the station access modules includes a current detect module which alerts the control unit when a respective one of the stations is off hook; and a local office unit which simulates the station.